In automotive manufacturing, doors can be assembled by combining inner and outer door panels. As part of the manufacturing process, beads may be used (along with adhesive) to form the panels into a joint. How far a given bead penetrates into one or both panels may indicate how well the panels have been joined together. One way to determine the amount of bead penetration within a panel is to measure the size of the indentation. Bead penetration is not always uniform, and in some cases a particular amount of penetration is needed to achieve proper penetration, and therefore cohesion between the panels.
In some cases, beads can become concentrated in one or more areas of the panel, often due to non-uniform distribution. Therefore, a need exist to determine the quality and quantity of bead penetration by determining how many beads have achieved a certain amount of penetration within one or both panels.